Platinum Life
by Amber Tuesday
Summary: Buffy and the gang head back to school for their Junior year.Buffy's childhood friend and crush,Spike,moves back to Sunnydale.Will sparks fly?Also,Buffy has to try to figure out how to tell him that she's the Slayer.Spuffy
1. Juniors

**This chapter's kind of long and there's not much going on because I have to introduce everyone and explain what's going on since its a bit different. Hope you like it!**

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Ch. 1

_**Juniors**_

Buffy Summers made her way up the steps in front of Sunnydale High School the first day of her junior year.

When she reached the top, she looked around for her friends.

"Buffy, over here!"

Buffy looked in the direction of the voice and saw her friend Xander Harris waving at her. Buffy smiled and walked over to him and the rest of her friends sitting on a bench.

"Buffster! Great to see ya. What's up?" Xander asked.

"Same old, same old," Buffy answered, sitting down beside Willow Rosenburg, who had been her friend since third grade, just like Xander.

"Hey, Buffy," Willow smiled.

"Hi, Wil. Tara, how was the Bahamas?" Buffy asked.

"Yeah, the vacation I've always dreamed of but you got instead. How was it?" Xander asked sarcastically.

"It really wasn't that great. It was a cruise to the Bahamas and my brother got seasick, and my parents got terrible sunburns from playing too much shuffleboard. By the time we got to the Bahamas we just sat in a hotel room for three days, basically."

"Oh...in that case, I'm not so jealous." Xander thought about it. "No, still jealous."

Everyone smiled and the bell rang. They got up and headed toward the front doors of the school.

"So, we hittin' the Bronze tonight or what, guys?" Xander asked as they walked into their first class and sat down near each other.

"Sure. Celebrate the starting of school. Though, there's not much to celebrate... But I'm in," Buffy said as a boy with platinum blonde hair, carefully slicked back, walked into the classroom and sat down in the seat closest to the door.

"Who's that?" Tara asked, looking at him.

Everyone followed her eyes.

"Yikes! That's hair," Xander commented.

"Yeah. Wonder how much bleach that took," Buffy said.

"I've never seen him before," Tara said.

"Me neither," Willow responded. "Though...I guess he does look a little bit familiar."

"Yeah, he does," Buffy agreed as the bell rang again and the teacher walked into the room and began to talk.

Buffy couldn't concentrate. Her brain kept nagging her as to who this boy was. She stared at him practically the whole time, but nothing came to mind.

When class was over, Buffy got up and to go talk to him, but he left before she got the chance.

"I think that has to be the one person in school with hair crazier than mine," Oz pointed out.

"Who knew that was possible?" Xander asked sarcastically, grinning, as the gang walked out of the classroom and down the hall toward their lockers. "I mean, that hair is like...whoa."

"I thought it was kind of hot," Tara commented shyly.

"Hot? I was thinking more along the lines of weird," Xander replied as Cordelia Chase and her followers approached them.

"You must be talking about yourself, Xander Harris. Because weird's the one word that describes you perfectly," Cordelia said, smiling evilly.

"No, I was referring to the new kid's bleached hair, _Cordelia,_" Xander told her.

"Oh, him. Someone needs to tell him that Billy Idol hair is _so_ over."

"Do you know his name?" Willow asked.

"No. He won't talk to anyone. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have a life to live." Cordelia pushed past them and walked away.

"Cordelia has insulted us. It's official. School's back in session," Xander said and they continued down the hallway.

When they passed the library, Buffy went in to check in with Giles since she hadn't seen him since school ended.

"Hello...Giles..." Buffy called as she walked into the library.

Giles came out of his office.

"Oh, Buffy. Good to see you. How was your summer?"

"Boring in all meanings of the word," Buffy told him. "And that includes the un-dead activity."

"So, no problems then?"

"Nope. Problem free. Though, I did break a nail once while slaying a vamp..." Giles looked at her, "But you probably don't need to know that. So, what's up? Any apocalypic stuff goin' on?"

"No, fortunately."

"Good! 'Cause the gang's meeting up at the Bronze tonight, and I was kind of hoping for a free."

"You should still probably patrol," Giles advised. "Just in case."

"Sure. I can do that. I'll just go to the Bronze and swing through the cemetery before going home."

"Very good. I'll let you know if anything comes up."

"OK, cool. I'll catch ya later," Buffy responded and left the library.

* * *

That night at the Bronze, the gang was all out on the floor dancing to an up-beat song.

When it was over, they all went back to their table and sat down, catching their breath.

"I need a drink. Anyone else want one?" Xander asked.

"Yes, please," they all agreed.

"OK. Anyone have any money?" Xander asked and everyone looked at him. "What? I spent all my money on drinks _last_ night."

Buffy gave him ten dollars and he went off to get the drinks.

"Just a question, but how's he going to carry all those back by himself?" Oz wondered.

"He volunteered. Let him figure it out," Buffy replied.

"Hey, you guys. Look." Willow nodded toward the table about ten feet away from them.

"It's the new boy," Tara said.

He was sitting at a table by himself, stirring his drink with a straw.

Just then, Xander came back with a tray full of drinks.

"Oh, he figured it out," Oz said.

"Yep. I do have some brains, believe it or not," Xander said, handing out the drinks to everyone and sitting down. "I see blondie's here."

"He looks kind of lonely," Willow said, feeling sorry for him.

"Yeah, he does," Buffy agreed, studying him and narrowing her eyes. He reminded her of her old friend from elementary, who moved away in third grade. Maybe he was. She'd have to ask him tomorrow, though, because he was leaving.

**THE END OF CHAPTER 1**

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Thanks for the reviews, mates! I've changed a few things according to your reviews. It's loads better now.

Keep the reviews coming!


	2. Old School

**Sorry I haven't updated in a long time! Thanks for the reviews anyway :-D

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Ch. 2

_**Old School**_

"Have you found out Peroxide Boy's name yet?" Xander asked the next day at lunch.

"No, but he's very talented when it comes to disappearing. Not literally, of course. Just so I can't find him," Buffy explained.

"Has anyone noticed that we've barely talked about anything else except for the new boy since yesterday morning?" Tara asked.

"Yeah, I did. But I didn't think it was worth mentioning," Oz replied.

"Tara's right. We're pathetic," Willow pouted.

"Well, we can't be pathetic if we stop talking about it right now and change the subject," Buffy said, and then silence fell over them until Buffy asked, "So, what do you guys want to talk about?"

Everyone shrugged as the new boy walked over to them with his lunch tray. The group noticed and looked up at him.

"Can I sit with you guys?" he asked cooly without one hint of nervousness in his voice. "All the other tables are bloody full."

"Oh, sure. Yeah. No problem," they all replied and he sat down across from Buffy by Tara and Xander.

"So...what's your name?" Willow asked cheerfully after a few seconds.

"Spike," he answered and Buffy's eyes grew wide.

"That's one I've never heard before. Is that your real name, man, or what?" Xander asked.

"William's my real name, but only my mum calls me that."

"Understandable. Not that William's a bad name, by any means." Xander laughed nervously and then introduced himself. "I'm Xander. Alexander, actually, but I'd prefer if you didn't repeat that."

"I'm Willow and this is Oz."

"Hey," Oz said to Spike, who nodded in return.

"Oh, I'm Tara," she smiled.

"Nice to meet some people around this town who seem halfway normal," Spike said.

"Looks _can_ be deceiving," Xander responded and Willow nudged him with her elbow and gave him a warning look.

"What about you, pet?" Spike asked Buffy, who looked up at him as if she'd been in a trance. "You look strangely familiar."

"Oh, I'm Buffy Summers."

"_Buffy Summers?_! Bloody hell, I didn't know you still lived here."

"Yep, I'm still here. Some may say that's not so good of a thing."

"Um, I hate to interrupt here, but you two know each other?" Xander asked.

"Yeah. Spike was my best friend for years until he moved away to New York in third grade. That was before I met you and Wil," Buffy replied.

"We met in preschool," Spike reflected.

"When I accidently punched him and gave him a black eye."

"I can believe that," Oz said.

"And I thought _I _was the strong one in school," Spike added.

"You were always the bad boy, Spike," Buffy teased. "Going to the principal's office every other day, not doing your work...need I go on?"

"What can I say? Always been bad," Spike grinned.

"Hey! I remember you now. You were the guy who was always wearing black and stealing my lunch money!" Xander accused.

"Oh, yeah! You were such a wimp," Spike remembered and Xander gave him an annoyed look.

"Yeah! And there was this blonde girl you were always hanging out with that had a weird name," Willow recalled and Buffy looked at her. "No offense, Buffy."

"So, that was before you knew Buffy?" Tara asked.

"Yup. When Spike moved, Will felt bad for Buffy 'cause she was all alone and after awhile we became 'the three musketeers!'" Xander explained.

"Now we're the..." Oz counted everyone mentally, 'six musketeers.'"

"Mmm-hmm. We just keep getting bigger," Xander said as the bell rang and they all got rid of their trays and then headed to their next class, which they did not all have together. Buffy and Spike parted with the rest of the gang and kept walking towards biology class.

"Quite a group of friends you got there," Spike commented.

"Yeah, they are. And now the gang has one more person in it, thanks to you," Buffy said. "What brings you back to Sunnydale, anyway?"

"Mum's job," Spike replied. "Got a better job at some law office in town."

"Sunnydale has a law office?"

"Yeah, well, that's what I said. Though, I think this is a bit better than New York."

"Really? I'd rather have New York, personally," Buffy said.

Spike laughed. "I like small towns better. The school's a lot nicer. Not so much security and...people."

"Hey, tonight the gang's meeting up at the Bronze. You should come," Buffy suggested.

"I'll be there," Spike said and smiled at Buffy, who did the same back as the bell rang and class began.

**THE END OF CHAPTER 2

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**I know this chapter's kind of boring. Just keep reading. The pace starts picking up in the next two chapters.**

**Keep reveiwing please!**


	3. Hope & Crush

**Ch. 3**

_**Hope & Crush**_

Spike was right on time that night and the gang was having a great time. Buffy just wondered what she'd say when she had to go patrol, but when the next song came on Buffy stopped worrying and followed her friends to the dance floor.

"So, how are things going with you and Spike?" Willow grinned, having to raise her voice to be heard over the music but not letting anyone else hear.

"What do you mean?" Buffy asked.

"Oh, come on, Buffy! I saw the way you were looking at him today...and tonight."

"Snoop," Buffy accused teasingly.

"So, do you like him? Does he know?"

"No and no." Willow shot Buffy an I-know-you're-lying look. "Well, maybe yes for the first question..."

"Maybe?"

"Okay, okay. I really, _really _like him. But we're friends. It was no different than when I liked him in kindergarten."

"Kindergarten? I didn't start noticing boys until, like, third grade."

Buffy smiled slightly. "I know. There was just always something special about Spike. Something that made him stand out." Buffy glanced over at Spike dancing near Tara.

The song ended and a slow song began a few seconds later. Oz asked Willow to dance, and she accepted. The rest of the gang headed back to the table.

"Cute together, those two are." Spike nodded towards Willow and Oz. "What about you two?" he asked Xander and Tara. "You together?"

"Us? No, no. Definitely not. Nope," they replied quickly.

"What about you, Buffy?" Spike looked over at her from across the table. "Do you have a boyfriend?"

"No. No boyfriends for Buffy...lately. And when I say lately, I mean forever."

"Well, the guys around here obviously don't know what they're missing out on," he smiled fondly.

Buffy blushed and Xander stared at them, wondering what was going on.

A little while later, Buffy realized she'd better go patrol so she would get home before her mom went crazy wondering where she was. She was even worse since she'd found out that Buffy's the Slayer a little less than a year ago.

"I'd better go. It's getting late and weird people come out," Buffy said, trying to get the message across to her friends without Spike noticing anything. "My mom worries."

"Oh, weird people, right. People who are weird that are good to avoid," Xander said, understanding what Buffy meant. "See ya tomorrow."

"Bye, Buffy," Tara said.

"Be careful," Willow warned.

"Don't worry, always am." Buffy got up.

"Want me to go with you?" Spike offered.

"No, I'm sure Buffy's fine by herself," Xander answered quickly for her. He was starting to get the feeling that there was something going on between Buffy and Spike, and was getting jealous because he liked Buffy and didn't want Spike to swoop in and take her away.

"Thanks, but I'll be fine. Trust me." Buffy gave him a slight smile before turning to go. Spike stared after her.

Buffy breathed a sigh of relief when she was clear of the Bronze. She'd been tense all day around Spike, and it wasn't because of the slayer thing. She was falling hard for him and she couldn't stop.

After Buffy had made a quick sweep of the cemetery and running into nothing, she headed toward home. She was greeted by her mother, Joyce, when she walked through the front door.

"Honey, hi. Did you have a good time?"

"Yeah. It's nice to have Spike back around." Buffy had told her mom about Spike being back that afternoon.

"I never liked that boy much. He was always getting into trouble and sometimes dragging you into it, as well, and you weren't even the Slayer yet!"

"He's better, Mom," Buffy assured her.

"I still want you to bring him by sometime. I want to know who you're hanging around with."

"I'll bring him by, I promise."

"Good. And don't think I'm going to forget about it!"

Buffy rolled her eyes. "I'm sure. Look, it's kind of late and I'm beat. I'll see you morning."

"Goodnight, sweetie," Joyce said and kissed Buffy on the forehead before Buffy went up to her bedroom.

* * *

Buffy was looking at an old picture she had of her and Spike that had been taken a week before he'd moved. She smiled. She was so glad he was back.

"So, he's back?" Buffy looked up to see Dawn standing in her doorway.

"Yeah. His hair's different, though."

"What's it like?"

"It's a platinum blonde color and slicked back and..."

"And you're totally into him," Dawn finished.

"What? No! Spike's my friend."

"Oh, yeah, right. I'm 14, Buffy. I think I can tell when a girl likes a guy."

"Well, you're wrong," Buffy lied.

"Come on, Buffy. I think it's sweet," Dawn smiled warmly.

"OK, so I like him. Why does it matter?"

"It matters because now you have to find out if he feels the same," Dawn replied.

"No. I'm not going there."

"Don't worry. You'll be able to tell if he does."

"How?"

"Well, when he tells you that he likes you, that's a usually good sign."

Buffy laughed. "Thanks, Dawnie. I hope you're right."

**END OF CHAPTER 3

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Keep the reviews coming! **


	4. Hailern

**********Sorry I haven't updated for so long. Forgive me!**

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Ch. 4

_**Hailern**_

"Hey, Giles. What's up?" Buffy asked, walking into the library the next day.

"Quite a lot, I'm afraid," Giles responded, glancing up at her from one of his books.

"I don't like the way you said that," Buffy grimaced, and sat down at the table. "What's going on?"

"Last night I was reading one of the books the Council sent me on rare demons and I stumbled upon this." Giles handed Buffy the book opened to a page with a picture of a demon on it.

"Doesn't look so bad. Some demons are really gross. Oh, like that one demon who destroyed the coffee shop! He was so--"

Giles took the book back. "Can we stay on task, please?"

"Sorry, my bad. So, demon guy. What's he do?"

"He's called Hailern, a very old demon, first documented over a thousand years ago."

"What's he do?"

"H–He picks a victim and tortures them in a way until they're dead so he can take their soul to feed on it, to survive."

"And he's in Sunnydale?" Buffy asked.

"Yes, I believe so. This morning more than five bodies were found in the alleys. All were badly bruised and some of their bones crushed. I could be wrong, but it fits Hailern's description."

"So, he crushes their bones, not to make his bread, but to suck up their souls so he won't die? Wow, nice guy. Where do I find him?"

"In alleys, most likely."

"Easy victims, usually. Okay, I'll patrol the alleys tonight. How do I kill this guy if I find him?"

"Um...use something sharp. A knife would probably be best," Giles told her.

"Yay! Something different. Now I just have to keep Spike from finding out about it," Buffy added, more to herself than Giles. "Bye." She got up and left.

"Be careful!" Giles called after her.

* * *

"Buffy, what's up?" Xander asked as she walked toward them at lunchtime.

Buffy sat down at the table. "Where's Spike?"she asked, noticing his absence.

"He said he had to go get something out of his locker. Why?" Willow asked.

"I need to tell you guys something."

Buffy quickly told them about the new demon in town.

"Darn, and we were gonna party it up at the Bronze," Xander sighed.

"We do that every night," Buffy pointed out.

"Yes, but tonight we were going to party extra hardy," Xander grinned.

"Do you want us to patrol with you, Buffy? This demon sounds really serious. You could use some backup," Willow offered.

"Yeah, we could distract him so you can pound him or something," Oz suggested.

"Thanks, but I don't want you guys to get hurt."

"There has to be something we can do, though," Tara said.

"Not really. Just a search and slay mission. I find him, I kill him, we party."

"Here, here!" Xander cheered.

"Just be careful, Buffy," Willow warned.

"Always am," Buffy smiled.

* * *

That night Buffy was walking down an alley not too far from the Bronze, which she figured would be a more likely hangout for Hailern with all the people around and all. She'd been through almost every alley, though, and still no sign of any demon whatsoever.

"Well, this is getting frustrating," Buffy said to herself. "They can never just come out and say 'Over here, over here! Come kill me.' Always have to make it interesting."

Just then, Buffy heard footsteps behind her and a familiar voice.

"Buffy?"

Buffy spun around to find Spike standing in front of her.

"Spike, what are you doing here?"

"I was just heading home from the Bronze. This is the quickest route."

'Figures,' Buffy thought.

"I think the real question is what are _you_ doing here? Thought you were busy."

"I am, actually. I'm–" Buffy saw a vampire coming up behind Spike. "Move!"

Buffy pushed Spike out of the way, making him fall to the ground on his side, and faced the vampire.

Spike looked up and watched her fighting the...whatever it was, totally confused. It looked like a vampire, but vampires aren't real. And Buffy. Since when did she know how to fight like that? And she was obviously _way _stronger than she looked. 'She must be some kind of...superhero,' he thought. 'This is just getting too weird.'

Buffy finally pinned the vamp against a wall and dusted him, which was quite a shock to Spike. Buffy went over and helped him up.

"That guy just...went 'poof'."

"Yeah, and he's wasn't really an actual 'guy'," Buffy said, and Spike looked at her, his eyes full of confusion. "I guess I have some explaining to do."

"Yeah, I'd say you do, pet."

"Maybe we should go to my house. I can explain everything on the way. My mom wants to meet you, anyway."

Spike and Buffy headed towards her house and Buffy explained everything as well as she could.

"So much for moving to a normal town," Spike sighed.

"It is normal." Spike looked at Buffy. "It's normal to person who doesn't know about the un-norm...and who's completely stupid."

"I always kind of knew there were other things in the world. Supernatural things. I never thought my best friend would be a part of them, though."

Buffy looked at the ground and smiled. "I didn't know either, until Giles moved to Sunnydale two years ago and said, 'You're the Slayer. The Chosen One. One girl in all the world, blah, blah, blah,'" Buffy explained, imitating Giles.

"Does anyone else know you're the Slayer?"

"The whole gang. My mom and sister, Dawn, found out about a year ago. Other than that, no one else." The Summers' house came upon them, and they stopped in front of the walk leading up to the house. "Well, here we are. Want to come inside?"

"Sure. Meet you mum and sis and all that."

They made their way up the path, onto the porch, and through the door. Buffy closed the door and called, "Mom, I'm home!"

Joyce came down the hallway from the kitchen with Dawn following behind. "Buffy, you're home early."

"Yeah, I ran into Spike, who was attacked by a vampire, who I slayed and then I had to explain the whole slayer thing."

"Oh, are you both all right?" Joyce asked, concerned.

"We're fine, Mom. Oh, and this Spike."

"Oh, hello. I'm Joyce." She held out her hand and Spike shook it.

"Nice to meet you," Spike replied and noticed Dawn. "And you're Dawn."

"Yeah, that's me," Dawn smiled shyly.

"Yes, well, it's getting late," Buffy said quickly and looked at Spike. "You should probably get home."

"Yeah, I should. Mum'll be worryin'. See you tomorrow." Spike nodded at Joyce and left.

"Nice young man, isn't he? Not at all what I was expecting," Joyce smiled.

"Mm-hmm. A regular angel," Buffy said sarcastically.

"Close to it," Dawn agreed and Buffy gave her an annoyed look.

"Are you two dating?"

"What! Spike's my friend, Mom." Why was everyone asking that question?

"You two would make a great couple."

"Last night you didn't even trust Spike and now I'm supposed to date him?"

"I'm only saying something, dear. It's totally up to you who you date. Within reason."

Buffy rolled her eyes and went up to her room with a 'Night' to her younger sister and Joyce.

**END OF CHAPTER 4

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**Please comment! I'm not sure if this chapter's really very good or not.**


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